(Musings on Life as a Mom and a Vet)

Gratuitous Plugs, What Not To Feed Your Dog, and Other Random Stuff

Or not so gratuitous, I don’t get a kickback or anything, but here are a few odds and ends that I’ve heard about that I thought I’d pass on…

1. Pledge Fabric Sweeper: http://www.pledge.com/fabric-sweeper My mom got this for the plethora of hairs released by her yellow Lab, Destin and she is RAVING about it. I was at her house last week and my black capris are covered in Destin hair (mom was out of town prior to my arrival so she had not been doing her usual twice daily vacuuming and de-hairing…on that topic, my kids used to get scared at her house because they have never heard a vacuum running before…the only time that sound occurs at my house is every other week when the cleaning lady comes)

2. Cool Website: http://www.cdc.gov/ticks/tick_removal.html I was talking to a client about the tick her husband found on his chest (GROSS!) and whether or not he got it from the dog (not likely, ticks pretty much like to find a host and stay with it, unlike the vampires in “Twilight”, which by the way, I finished the series and am soooo sad it’s over, the 4th book was fabulous, in my opinion, and I want more!!) Anyhow, while looking up human medical issues for her, I came across this site on tick removal and it holds true for dogs too…Vaseline and burning the tick with a cigarette don’t work!!!

3. Greyhound Adopiton League of Texas: http://www.greyhoundadoptiontx.org/ Amy, or registered techinician is in charge of all their medical stuff, Stephanie our receptionist is an avid fosterer and adopter also very active in the organization. These girls work tirelessly for these dogs, caring for their myirad of wounds and diseases that come with them off the track. They are regulars at the Dallas Veterinary Surgical Center, where they pay full price for MANY orthopedic surgeries for their injuries. Apparently they had their big fundraiser dinner a few weeks ago and donations are waaaay down due to the economy. So, if you know any rich benefactors or want a new dog (they’re not the best for kids under 5, so we can’t get one yet…but they’re super cool dogs, not hyper like you’d think, literally couch potatoes)…look them up.

4. Our website, under “Animal Health Info” http://www.planovets.com/faq.html We got this cool computer program that provides piles and piles of information about pet health and even videos about stuff ranging from seizures to how to clip nails or give a pill. We’re kind of excited about it (while you’re at it, you can just look over our new website in general, Cindy at Jeno Designs (www.jenodesign.com) our wonderful web design company is awesome…)

5. ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/ Lots of great info on things your pet can be poisoned by. They run the only animal only poison control hotline, so if Fluffy breaks into grandma’s purse and eats all her pills, call them. If you don’t, we will. There is a fee, because that’s how they pay their peeps, it’s totally worth it, they really run a tight ship, with excellent information and really help the veterinary profession. They were the first ones to raise the alert a few years ago when it was found out that grapes and raisins were toxic to dogs.

6. Other foods to avoid in dogs: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/people-foods.html Off the top of my head: onions, garlic, avocados, macadamia nuts, xylitol (in sugar free stuff, esp gum), chocolate, yeasty dough, coffee, marijuana and alcohol (duh…I really want to make some jokes here, but have to remain somewhat professional) , avoid fatty/spicy stuff (unless you have a whole pile of extra money and want to hospitalize your dog for pancreatitis). Also don’t feed them from the table (which will be guaranteed to turn them into relentless beggars). This should be common sense BUT, if you have a dog who tends to have a sensitive stomach, then avoid ALL people food! These are the ones who need to stick to their dog food (also the ones who are on prescription foods for various disease processes)…probably check with your vet prior to feeding human foods, just in case…

That’s all I can think of right now, and my fingers are getting tired after typing yesterday’s long post so I will talk to you folks later…

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3 thoughts on “Gratuitous Plugs, What Not To Feed Your Dog, and Other Random Stuff”

Thanks for mentioning GALT.
Small correction on the Greyhound Adoption
League of Tx, Inc., The Medical Director is
Ms. Susie Mcquade, the Fairy Godmother, Mary
Poppins and Dr. Doolittle of all things
greyhound. I merely assist along with many many
other volunteers committed to the welfare of
these wonderful canines. Check outhttp://www.galtx.org for more information about these
greyt retired athletes.

Thanks for spreading the word on pet toxicities on your blog – so important for pet owners to be aware of the lurking household poisons in (and outside of) their house! As an ER specialist, I see so many toxicities that owners bring in too late (making it more expensive to treat, with a worse prognosis!). When in doubt, it’s so important to call a Poison Control for peace of mind!

I wanted to make you aware of another important resource out there also – Pet Poison Helpline is an additional Animal Poison Control Center, and it’s one of the most cost-effective animal poison ($35/case vs. ASPCA’s new $60/case) controls out there nowadays. Unfortunately, because animal poison controls are not federal- or state-funded, there is a fee to allow the service to be run 24-7. We provide a similar service, but have the added benefit of veterinary specialists (in internal medicine and emergency and critical care) as part of our staff. You can always call 1-800-213-6680 if you ever have a problem. Thanks for spreading the word!